Public Parade
Hold The Wafer
A bearing was held in Winton
Tuesday night on an application
by CF Industries to discharge
water from holding ponds into the
Chowan River. This is not an
unusual procedure, but it is
unusual that word was so slow in
reaching those who meander
along the Public Parade.
The “green tide” which all but
killed the beautiful body of water
is set in concrete in the minds of
those who witnessed it. And the
state Division of Environmental
Management isn’t regaining any
Os the lost creditability by keeping
the firm’s application a closely
guarded secret.
We, in fact, learned of die
hearing last Thursday while at
tending a meeting as the Coastal
Resources Commission in Car
teret County. Even then, the
i message came from a Tyrrell
County resident.
At about the same time the word
had readied Edenton Chamber of
Commerce and Chowan County
commissioners and both dispat
ched strong letters of opposition.
The word has gotten out, then, at
Tuesday’s hearing should have
been a barn-burner.
. Water in those holding ponds,
which earlier were found to have a
considerable leaking problem,
contain the same ingredients
which were blamed for triggering
algae blooms of tremendous
magnitude. The company cer
tainly has no right to discharge
that water into the Chowan River,
it would only open the gate. The
state had better see that it doesn’t
happen!
Good Switch
An acceptable balance has been
struck between farm to market as
well as tourist to resort roads in
the Hunt Administration’s $2-
billion seven-year highway im
provement program- And since
the caOtmpQhe «}up of atatec btf
bats pvauuie opportunity so
succeed himself, he could be
around to cut all the ribbons.
The State Board of Tran
sportation, meeting in Raleigh
Friday, also approved a project
long on Edenton’s throughfare
plan—Coke Avenue extension—
and gave the Community
Development Project budget a
shot in the arm by agreeing to be
responsible for improvements on
North Oakum Street.
The action brought North
eastern North Carolina from 14th
in 14 highway divisions up to sixth.
That’s a pretty hefty jum and
indicates that for the first time in
memory, this area is being dealt a
decent hand, highway-wise.
This is a mecca for tourism,
recreation and a breadbasket for
the most populated Area of this
country. One of the problems has
been you could hardly get
anywhere from here or from
anywhere to here. This may now
change, in our lifetime.
Crafts Leaders Form Association
A 10-county group of craft
leaders met January 10 at the
Extension offices at Elizabeth City
to file for incorporation of a crafts
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Association of Artisans, Inc., has been formed by craft Interests
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FIRE LEVELS VALHALLA PRODUCE Though firemen gained control of a blaze at Valhalla
Produce Co. last Thursday afternoon in about one hour, the facility was still completely destroyed.
About two hours earlier, firemen responded to an alarm at Cape Colony involving a house now
believed to have been deliberately burned.
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Volume XUV.—No. 3.
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STREET IMPROVEMENTS Two street improvements
within the Town of Edenton were approved by the State Board of
Transportation at a meeting in Raleigh Friday where a $2-billion
seven-year plan was adopted. The solid line shows the ap
proximate location of extension of Coke Avenue to Highway 32.
The wavy line at left is the location of improvements to North
Oakum Street. The broken line is the town’s proposed extension of
East Freemason Street to Coke Avenue.
marketing association.
Attending were representatives
from the following counties:
Chowan, Camden, Currituck,
Edenton North Carolina, Thursday, January 19, 1978
Dare, Hyde, Pasquotank,
Perquimans, Tyrrell, and
Washington. Also, Albemarle
Area Home Economists Fran
Ward, Ann Edge, Sandra Brown
and Jessica Manning. Elsie Ed
wards, area agent in creative
crafts and home industries;
Josephine Patterson, North
eastern district extension
chairman; Marge Adams,
creative crafts specialist, N.C.
Extension Service, Raleigh and
Gene Sutton of N.C. Rural Fund
for Development, also attended.
The name of the association is
WATERMARK Association of
Artisans, Inc. Its objective is to
provide a market for quality craft
and home preserved food products
produced in the Albemarle Area.
Coordinated with Its market
program, the association will
purchase supplies and train
craftsmen, o ♦
An application for grant funds to
the . N.C. Rural Fund for
Development is being drafted.
With use of grant funds and
membership shares ; the
select a manager and a site for the
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Street Improvements Set
Extension of Coke Avenue to intersect with Highway 32 near Old
Hertford Road has been approved by the State Department of Tran
sportation and “hopefully” work on the project will begin this summer.
W.B. Gardner, town administrator, also said DOT has approved work
on North Oakum Street adjacent to the Community Development
Project, which is now underway. He said “hopefully” this also will be
accomplished this summer.
Gardner has proposed to Town Council that when the Coke Avenue
work is underway that the town extend East Freemason Street to con
nect with the new street. This would take a considerable amount of
traffic off of heavily populated Jackson Street.
The town has sufficient right-of-way to extend Freemason to Old
Hertford Road. It is not proposed that this be done in a single phase.
At the same time the DOT board approved a $2-billion seven-year high
way plan which includes four “top priority” projects in Northeastern
North*Car6fiM. They include four-laninga 16.2-mi}e portion of U.S. 17
from north of Elizabeth City to the Virginia line at a cost of $29.5-million;
and a 25-mile stretch of U.S. 158 from Point Harbor to Barco in Currituck
County, costing an estimated $17.5-million.
Also, improvements to U.S. 64 were also approved at an estimated cost
of sl3-million along with Highway 12 from Nags Head to Hatteras. The
Dare County project will depend to a great extent on whether or not aid
is received from the National Park Service, according to Marc Basnight,
a member of the DOT board from his area.
Basnight, who resides in Manteo, predicted that the Hunt Ad
ministration’s highway improvement program will “move quickly”.
Sec. Thomas Bradshaw conducted a series of 14 public hearings across
the state to get citizen participation in the state program. He said at the
time Northeastern North Carolina could expect to receive more than
casual treatment, primarily because the Albemarle Area Development
Association had an active Highway Committee which established a list of
priorities and presented them to DOT.
Basnight said this division jumped from 14th position, or last, to sixth
this year. He was active on the area committee before being chosen by
Gov. Jim Hunt to become a member of the DOT board.
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Mrs. Lueta C. Sellers
County Board
Seat Contested
A contest developed this week
for the Chowan County Board of
Commissioners as Mrs. Lueta C.
Sellers announced that she would
seek the seat now held by C.A.
Phillips from the Fourth Town
ship. Like Phillips, Mrs. Sellers
resides in the Montpelier Acres
area.
Phillips, former board chair
man and an executive of Edeaton
Cotton Mills, filed for re-election
last week.
this is the second race to
develop in the May 2 primary and
or election, but the first in the
Democratic primary. Two—Cedi
Csntißaed on Page 4
Firemen Battled
Thursday Fires
A fire that gutted a vacant house
in Cape Colony is believed to have
been deliberately set and the
Valhalla Produce Company was
nearly leveled by fire last Thurs
day afternoon. Edenton firemen
responded to both calls about two
hours apart.
The second blaze was brought
under control after one hour, but
firemen were unable to save the
feed mill and other facilities of
Valhalla Produce Co.
Murray J. Tynch, Sr., owner,
reported the fire may have started
in a pile of wheat straw on a porch
resulting in the loss of the $200,000
mill and another SIOO,OOO in fer
tilizers and insecticides. The day’s
records and receipts were also
lost. Tynch reported that the
property was partially insured.
A series of explosions rumbled
through the burning ruins,
believed to have been exploding
truck tires, it was reported.
Single Copies 15 Cents.
CF Industries
Seeks Permit
CF Industries at Tunis has made
application to the State of North
Carolina for a permit to dump
water from holding ponds into the
Chowan River. A hearing by the
Division of Environmental
Management was held Tuesday
night in Winton.
The board of Edenton Chamber
of Commerce last week expressed
opposition to the application in
behalf of “our citizens, fishermen,
sailing and boating enthusiasts."
W. L. Norvell, president, said
there had been no announcement
of the meeting and the chamber is
"bitterly opposed” to any action
which would allow the firm to
discharge water containing
nitrogen and phosphorous into the
river.
Several years ago the state and
federal governments joined
together in efforts to solve the
algae problem in the river. “It is
hard for us to believe you to even
consider such action from a firm
that was fined for allowing
seepage into our river and
assisting other dements present
to reach this stage," Norvell
wrote.
Chowan County commissioners
have also expressed opposition to
die latest application and J.D.
Pede and Lester Copeland, board
members, planned to attend the
meeting.
Edenton Fire Chief Luther
Parks said the fire was brought
quickly under control and firemen
remained after the blaze to watch
over the smoldering debris.
Center Hill-Crossroads Fire
Department also responded to the
alarm under the direction of Carl
ton Besell.
Hertford firemen provided local
back-up from the Edenton fir*
station.
Earlier an occupied house
believed to be owned by Roy
Bryant of Norfolk, Va. was gutted
by a fire that Edenton firemen
battled for some two hours.
Chief Luther Parks and Sheriff
Troy Toppin requested an in
vestigation by the SBI who later
discovered kerosene soaked rags
by a water heater that had burned
through to the ground.
Entry had been gained by
breaking out a window in the rear
of the house, indicating either
vandalism or arson in the incident.
Cecil W. Fry
Cecil W. Fry
Ends Career
Cecil W. Fry, associate
superintendent of Edenton-
Chowan Schools since 1970, has
retired after 31 years of service to
public education. This an
nouncement was made and
acknowledged at the Edenton-
Chowan Board of Education’s
regular January meeting.
A Resolution of Appreciation for
his years of service as a teacher,
principal, and Associate
Superintendent was unanimously
approved to be entered in the
Board’s permanent records, with
the concensus that “he will be
sorely missed on all educational
fronts.”
According to Supt. Dunn, “An
associate superintendent to fill the
vacancy will be announced for the
board’s approval at the February
meeting.” Fry’s retirement was
precipitated by health reasons.
As the result of a recent joint
meeting between Chowan, Gates,
and Perquimans County school
board members, concrete plans
were made to visit existing
educational centers employing the
concept of providing vocational
training and academic enrich
ment to students. Visitation to The
Pruden Center in Suffolk on
January 11 by school board
members, school administrators,
and invited county commissioners
is the first step in exploring the
feasibility and educational ad-
Continued on Page 4
Deadline Set
February 3
Property owners have until
February 3 to list their property
for taxes without penalty, ac
cording to Dallas Jethro, Jr.,
county coordinator and tax
* perviaor. After this date a 10 per
penalty will be added for
failure to list.
Hie First Township, Fourth
Township, Arrowhead Beach,
Chowan Beach and Cape Colony
list in the County Office Building
where six listers are on duty from
8 A.M. to 5 P.M., Monday through
Friday and 8 A.M. until 12-noon on
Saturday.
Listers in the Second and Third
townships have various schedules
which are posted and have been
advertised in she newspaper.